The present invention relates generally to self-service devices. More particularly, the invention relates to an identity verification and enrollment system for self-service devices.
In recent years, there has been an increase in the types of services that may be offered by self-service devices, which may be used by a customer to perform a transaction without direct interaction with a human. A common example of such self-service devices within the financial sector is the automatic teller machine (xe2x80x9cATMxe2x80x9d), which provides a customer with the ability to perform transactions with his bank. Typical services that may be provided include the ability to deposit or withdraw funds from one or more accounts held with the bank, or the ability to transfer funds among those accounts. Some institutions provide a broader range of services, such as the ability to cash a check at a self-service device. While marketed as xe2x80x9ccheck cashingxe2x80x9d systems, such systems are, in reality, little more than common xe2x80x9ccash withdrawalxe2x80x9d systems because checks are generally cashed only for persons who hold an account with that institution. When the check is cashed, the amount of the check, in addition to any applicable service fee, is deducted from the depositor""s account.
More recently, developments have been made to establish true check-cashing self-service systems that do not rely on the direct support of the customer""s account. One such effort in that direction is described generally in U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,738, assigned to Mr. Payroll Corporation (xe2x80x9cthe ""738 patentxe2x80x9d), the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference for all purposes. A particular disadvantage with the system described in that patent, however, is related to the need to verify the identity of a customer, particularly during the initial enrollment with the system. After the initial enrollment of the customer, the system of the ""738 patent may use biometric data based, for example, on an image of the customer or the customer""s fingerprint, to identify the customer. Check-cashing functions are then extended to the customer when his identity has been established by comparing his biometric data with what has been stored on the system.
While this system is effective after enrollment has been established, the problem of initial enrollment still persists. In particular, the system lacks the capability of determining whether the customer, the first time he presents himself, is indeed the person he claims to be. As implemented, enrollment is a particularly tiresome process that requires a new customer to be in telephonic contact with a call-center person and to answer several questions to verify his identity. This process can, typically, take up to ten minutes, and has a very significant negative impact on customer experience. Another example of a check-cashing self-service system that suffers from similar deficiencies is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,377, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.
There thus exists a general need in the art for an effective automatic method of enrolling an individual for approval in performing transactions with a self-service device.
Embodiments of the invention thus include a method and system for authorizing a customer to perform transactions with a self-service device. In one embodiment, a first set of biometric data regarding the customer is extracted from a verification instrument. A second set of biometric data is extracted directly from at least one feature of the customer. Textual data regarding the customer is extracted from the verification instrument. The first and second sets of biometric data are compared to determine whether they are derived from a single individual. If so, customer identification information, which may be derived from the extracted textual data, is recorded.
The customer identification information may comprise a name of the customer. The transactions may comprise providing funds in exchange for a financial instrument identifying the name of the customer, such as a note, a draft, a check, or a promissory note. The customer identification information may also comprise a signature of the customer. In one embodiment, the customer identification information is further derived from one of the first and second sets of biometric data.
In different embodiments, the first set of biometric data may be derived from image data on the verification instrument, from data encoded magnetically on the verification instrument, or from data encoded optically on the verification instrument. Examples of biometric data that may be used to derive the biometric data sets include facial features, fingerprints, and voice features. The textual data may be derived, for example, from data encoded magnetically or optically on the verification instrument. Alternatively, a database reference number may be extracted from the verification instrument and the textual data retrieved from the database with the database reference number.
The methods of the invention may be embodied in a self-service transaction system. The system comprises a plurality of networked self-service devices. At least one of the devices includes two identification devices. The first identification device is adapted to extract a first set of identification data directly from a customer and the second identification device is adapted to extract a second set of identification data and textual data regarding the customer from a verification instrument. A comparator in communication with the self-service device is configured to compare the first and second sets of identification data to determine whether they are derived from a single individual. A storage device is provided for storing customer identification data derived from the textual data.